A handful of Stardust
by Green Queen of Clubs
Summary: Life in the village of Wall was banal, the way it could only be in the country side of England. It was even more so for Foggy Nelson, son of Ben, the owner of the village's only book store. Then came the day when Marci Stahl asked him to bring her a fallen star, and Foggy had to cross over the wall. (Stardust!AU with Matt as a fallen star)


Life in the village of Wall was banal, the way it could only be in the country side of England. It was even more so for Foggy Nelson, son of Ben, the owner of the village's only book store. Foggy was a bright boy, taking after his father's cool head. His sunny disposition and distinct tendency to come to the help of others had made him the darling of the whole town before he could properly understand what that entailed. Nevertheless, Foggy Nelson grew from a promising infant to a genuinely good boy, if somewhat unambitious.

When he came of age, Foggy Nelson went to work, not for his father like all expected, but for the butcher of the village. He didn't choose so because he didn't love his father, or the book store, which he knew he would inherit when his father would grow too old to bend over to pick up stray volumes. No, he chose to work for the butcher because of Marci Stahl.

Now, Marci Stahl was also a bright girl, and her love of learning and books was almost as keen as Foggy's and his father's. However, she came seldom to the store, choosing to buy a dozen books at a time, rather than make numerous trips.

Meat, on the other hand, had the happy habit of turning bad, and thus Marci was forced to make the trip twice a week, much to the joy of Foggy Nelson.

This was one of those days, and Foggy Nelson was fretting around the store to ensure that Marci's order was complete and ready for her. He had learned quickly that it was the best way to make her agreeable to him.

"Good morning, Foggy-bear."

Foggy didn't even grimace at that, because for Marci he would endure far worst nicknames.

"A most agreeable morning to you as well, Marci."

Her smile was not unkind as she walked to the counter.

"I trust that you are well?"

Foggy gave her his best smile, the one full of dimples and sunlight. "All the better for seeing you!" He was proud of himself for not stammering or blushing overly much like he had the first few times.

"Of course you are." Marci's smile was just slightly pitying and very fond as she patted Foggy's cheek gently. For she did like Foggy Nelson quite a bit, and if she had desired a relationship at all, she would have liked it with him.

Foggy found himself without words after the soft touch, and handed her the wax paper wrapped parcel containing her order before finding back his tongue.

"Everything you asked for should be in here."

Marci smiled again, and turned around with a calm good-bye. Just as she was about to cross the door, Foggy Nelson found in himself a courage he didn't know he possessed.

"Marci?"

She turned around, arching one elegant eyebrow at him. He swallowed.

"Would you go on a picnic with me? Tonight or tomorrow, or any day to your liking?" She didn't answer right away, and Foggy took it as encouragement.

"The weather is really nice, it would seem a real shame to waste it."

Marci finally came to a decision, giving him a small nod.

"Be at my house at six tonight."

Foggy was stunned for a second and before he could add a word, she was gone.

OOOOOOOO

The same night found them lounging on a blanket at the edge of the village. Foggy had cooked a good meal that they both had greatly enjoyed, and they talked of books and tales until the sun was done for the day and the stars took over.

At that time, Foggy turned to Marci, suddenly serious.

"Marci, you of all people must know why I would invite you here tonight."

Marci sighed, and looked at him.

"Is it too much to hope that it was because we are friends?"

Foggy swallowed nervously.

"We are friends, and we will remain so whatever transpires of this night, Marci, I swear."

Marci pinched her lips, but waited for Foggy to finish his piece.

"I would like, if you are amenable, to court you, Marci Stahl."

Marci sighed, and looked down at the cup of wine she was still holding.

"Foggy-" The boy rushed forward, knowing this was his last chance.

"I will be good to you, Marci. I will be a good husband, and cherish you through thick and thin. I -"

He was interrupted by a soft hand on his cheek. Marci's eyes were sad and soft.

"I'm sorry, Foggy." Foggy's eyes fluttered shut, trying to hide the pain away. She didn't stop however.

"I'm sorry, and if I _had_ to choose anyone, Foggy, it would be you, I swear. I didn't mean to lead you on, if I did, but I genuinely like you. But I do not think I want to be with anyone, and I refuse to believe I _have_ to choose anyone."

Now, if she had said that she wasn't interested in him at all, or had been categorical in her rejection of romantic attachments, Foggy would have been good on his word and let it go. They would have gone back to be friends and it would be as if nothing happened.

However, Marci's kind words were soft enough that Foggy's young and not-quite-mature mind rushed back to all the tales he read growing up, of all the heroes first scorned by their ladies who proved their worth with some great deed to finally win their heart.

"I would go to India for you, and bring you pearl as big as your thumb, and rubies the size of wren's egg. I would go to Africa, and bring you diamonds the size of cricket balls. I would go to America, to the gold-fields, and come back with your weight in gold. Tell me Marci, what you want, and I will bring it back to you."

Marci stayed silent and grave for a moment. In her mind, she couldn't help but think that an adventure and some time away from her might be just what Foggy needed to fill his head and mature ever so slightly. She would miss her friend, but for his good and the good of their relationship, she could spare him.

She was puzzling over proper wording, intent on convincing him to go without making any promise to inflate what hope he had towards her, when a streak of light tore through the sky in front of their noses to fall on the other side of the wall.

She turned to smile at Foggy.

"Go and bring me back that star, and then we will talk again."

And Foggy Nelson, a bit stupid with alcohol and still a bit too young for the world, agreed enthusiastically.

OOOOOOOOOO

The very same night, after stopping at his house to grab a warm cloak and some provisions for the trip, Foggy made his way to the wall. There he was stopped by the guardian, Brett Mahoney. Brett's family had guarded the wall for generations, and were paid and sustained by the rest of the village.

Brett saw Foggy coming a long way away, and was ready to encounter him when he came within talking distance, long stick at the ready.

"Foggy Nelson. What the fuck are you doing here?"

Foggy rolled his eyes at him.

"You know, you keep with the dirty mouth, and I might just stop bringing you sandwiches."

"You don't bring me sandwiches, Mike does."

"Yeah, but I make them, and doesn't that give me terrifying powers over your stomach?"

"What are you doing here."

Foggy simply shrugged with a charming smile.

"Simply taking a stroll."

Brett looked thoroughly unimpressed.

"Yeah, sure. Just make sure your stroll stays on this side of the wall."

Foggy considered trying to force through, but Brett was definitely in better shape than him, and looked handy with his stick. He could wait for morning.

OOOOOOOOOO

The following day, his father was waiting for him when he went down the stairs.

"I heard you went to the wall yesterday."

Foggy swore silently, before turning around. His father was sitting, staring calmly at him.

"What about it?"

"The Mahoneys won't let you through, and you won't be able to sneak past, not this time."

Foggy frowned.

"What do you mean, not this time? I've never crossed the wall."

His father sighed.

"You didn't. I did."

Foggy gaped at him. What followed was the weirdest conversation he ever had. He heard of his father's old thirst for adventure, of how he crossed the wall and met a travelling woman at a strange market, just for one night. He learned of how she gave him the glass flower his father cherished, and of when he was conceived. He was told of how he arrived at his father's doorstep nine months later, in a basket and with a parcel his father never opened, as it was addressed to him.

It contained a letter and a black candle.

He read his mother's letter. He never gave much thought to the mother he had to have. His father was always enough for him, but now that he knew she existed, he felt compelled to go to her. Maybe she could help him with his quest.

He took the candle that had been wrapped into the letter. His mother had written the fastest way to travel was by candle light, and that if he thought of her and only her while holding it, he would rejoin with her.

He wasn't sure it would work, but at this point, he had nothing to lose. He asked his father for a light, and thought forcefully of his mother, but as he felt light envelop him, he couldn't help but wonder if that was how a falling star felt.

OOOOOOOOOO

The next thing Foggy knew was colliding with a solid body, and falling to the ground, on top of said person. There was a stunned silence while neither moved, before Foggy scrambled off the other, apologizing over and over again.

That was when he got a good look at the other person. They were tall, sporting crisp white breaches and a pale blue shimmering shirt, neither of which should be working for anyone, but somehow looked good on them. Their eyes were unfocused, darting around helplessly, but their mouth was resolute, the top lip dipping sinfully at the corners, and the bottom one jutting out ever so slightly.

They were also looking definitely male, and unlike everything his father had told Foggy about his mother, from the short hair to the slight stubble and the chest hair Foggy could just barely see peeking out of the low neck line of the shirt.

So of course, the only thing Foggy found to say was "You're not my mother."

The other's eyes finally focused on Foggy and they frowned, tone slightly condescending.

"I am not your mother. I'm afraid I would lack some necessary components to accomplish that act."

Foggy wanted to slap himself because, god, what a stupid question. And also, _hello_ sexy voice.

"Sorry about that. It's just that I was supposed to find my mother… But then I thought of the star-"

That was when Foggy came aware of his surroundings, especially of his location at the bottom of a crater, and he perked up considerably.

"The Star! This must be where it fell!" He whirled back around to where the other was still on the ground, lips pinched tight. "Have you seen a star?"

The other pursed their lips ever so slightly and their voice sounded strained.

"I have not _seen_ anything since I landed here, so no, I have not _seen_ the star."

Foggy paused for a moment over the other's choice of words before noticing they had still not tried to get up from the ground, and that they weren't in fact staring at Foggy, but rather at a point over his left shoulder.

"Oh, you're blind!"

The other frowned unhappily.

"I wasn't an hour ago, but yes, I seems that I am now blind."

Foggy didn't understand how a non-blind person suddenly lost their vision in the middle of the woods without sustaining any kind of visible injuries, but the other seemed touchy about the subject, so he let it go.

"You know what? Give me time to find the star, and I'll get us both to the nearest town."

The other man seemed surprised at Foggy's offer, before snorting bitterly.

"Oh, but I know where it is."

Foggy beamed at them, before remembering it was useless. "You do?"

"Yes. Like I know that he was minding his business in the sky when he was knocked down by this gaudy feeling necklace. Like I know he fell right here, losing his sight in the process. Like I know he was then knocked back down by a flying man with a frankly appalling sense of direction."

Foggy gaped at him before his brain caught up.

"You're the star! You're the star?"

He frowned toward him again and held his arm to Foggy, in a clear 'help me up', gesture.

"Of course. Did you think I wandered in a crater in the forest for the sake of it?"

Foggy tugged him up, shrugging awkwardly, before catching himself.

"I just shrugged, by the way. And it's just that I didn't expect you to look like this."

The star cocked an eyebrow.

"Like what?"

"Like a really, really good looking man?" Foggy was grateful the other couldn't see him blush.

There was an awkward pause, before the star cleared his throat.

"Why were you looking for me?"

Foggy coughed, trying to find a polite way to put the whole situation, before giving up, hanging his head and rubbing the back of his neck.

"I promised to my one true love, Marci Stahl, that I would bring her back the star- I mean you."

The star frowned at him.

"Why would you do that?"

"To prove my love and devotion to her."

"Because there's nothing more romantic than the gift of a blind man."

Foggy groaned. Now the star was insulted.

"We thought you'd be a rock! Or something equally none sentient!"

"Why would you think that?" The star seemed curious, cocking his head.

"Because that's what they taught us in school!"

There was a pause before the star chuckled.

"Really?"

"Yes, I swear."

He laughed again.

"That's preposterous."

Foggy joined in, spreading his hands.

"Yeah, well now I know better, I swear."

There was a longer silence this time, not uncomfortable but decidedly tense. The star was the first one to talk, resigned and tired.

"Well, are we going?"

Foggy frowned at him.

"Going were?"

"To your precious Marci Stahl."

Foggy choked a bit.

"You don't have to, buddy, I told you, we didn't know you'd be a person, I'm sure she'll understand."

"I'm sure she will. However, I'm a blind fallen star, in the middle of what sounds like a forest. You seem a decent man, and I don't think I can fare on my own for the moment."

"Are you sure?"

"This way I have help, and you get your star for Marci."

Foggy still was dubious, but the other had good arguments. He subtly tucked the remainder of the candle back in his pocket, vowing to use it to get the star back to the sky when Marci had seen him. He felt bad for not showing it to the star right away, but the thought of Marci quickly squashed it.

"Okay, then. I'm Foggy, by the way."

The star hesitated, before smiling.

"Matthew."

OOOOOOOOO

After some trial and errors, they worked out that the quickest way to move through the forest was by having Matthew holding Foggy's arm and Foggy warning him of any obstacles in their path. He was so focused on his task that he didn't look back at the star before he stumbled over a small root Foggy had already told him about.

He took one look at the man and swore. The star's skin was pale and sickly looking, with dark circle under his eyes, his mouth slackened with exhaustion.

"What the hell, man, you should have told me you needed to stop!"

The star shook his head.

"I'm fine, I swear, we can go on."

Foggy glared at him, guiding him to a large tree nearby.

"No, you're not. You look like shit warmed over, dude. Of course you do, it's the middle of the day, and you should be sleeping. You need to use your words, Matty."

The star said nothing, letting himself be led and offering only a little resistance when Foggy pushed him down. He groaned once on the floor, shuffling around to make himself more comfortable. Foggy shook his head at him again.

"Right, we've seen no one in the forest so far, so you should be fine here for a little while. I think there's a village not too far from here, I'll go and get us some food, okay?"

Matt nodded softly, already dozing off a bit. Foggy shook him awake.

"Don't move from here."

Matt snorted.

"I'm a blind star in the middle of the day, where do you suppose I will go?"

With one last look, Foggy left.

It turned out that the village was farther than Foggy had hoped, and it was dark by the time he found the tree he left Matt at.

'If nothing else, he should be well rested by now.'

However, he quickly realized the star was nowhere to be seen. For a moment, he swore, thinking Matt ran away, despite it being completely stupid, before he saw something dark contrasting on the green of the grass that cushioned the bottom of the tree.

Closer inspection revealed it to be blood. With his heart in his throat, he looked around to realise there was quite a bit of it, spread over a radius of three meters of the tree.

Wherever the star was, he hadn't left of his own free will.

OOOOOOOOO

Foggy Nelson was panicking. Now, many would consider this a perfectly normal reaction for a boy who was barely out of his teens, lost alone in a dark forest. However, Foggy Nelson was a good and mostly selfless boy, and in this moment thought not of himself, but of his new almost-friend who was gone, most likely hurt and definitely defenseless.

So he ran. He was not an athletic person, but he was a kind one, and the thought of someone being in need of help gave him greater speed and stamina than he thought possible. He ran, and ran, and ran, all the roots and branches of the forest seemingly evaporating in front of his feet, and he never tripped once.

Foggy Nelson ran until he jumped out of the forest and unto a road, where he scarcely avoided being trampled by great black horses. He fell on the ground, out of breathe and legs on fire. He saw the carriage come to a halt, and a man jump down to come and look over him.

"You should be more careful, boy, or you'll run to your death."

Foggy jumped to his feet.

"I'm sorry to bother you sir. But my friend is in much trouble, and I must come to his aid."

Despite his body screaming for mercy, Foggy was about to start running again, when the other man stopped him.

"What happened to your friend?"

The last thing Foggy Nelson wanted was to waste any more time, but the man had a carriage, and maybe he could help him.

"I don't know. I left to get us something to eat, and came back to find blood on the ground, and him nowhere to be seen."

The man nodded, sighed and nodded again, seemingly at war with himself.

"And where did they go?"

"This way." Foggy pointed and answered with the same assurance that had guided his feet so far, one he couldn't answer for but decided to trust anyway, for he had no better answer.

"You are in luck, my boy, since that is the direction my own quest is leading me to. Come sit beside me, and we may just be of help to each other."

Foggy readily accepted, climbing gratefully to the seat beside the man, eager to run after the star. There was a silence while the horses started running again, for Foggy had very little to say in his worry, and the other man was a wary one indeed. But not an impolite one.

"I am Nobu, the first born son of King Rigoletti. I am on the quest looking for what will give me the right to rule over Stormhold, the royal stone."

Foggy was stunned quiet an instant, for he had not been aware he was travelling with royalty, but remembered his manners and his smart tongue soon enough.

"I am Foggy Nelson, son of Ben, and I am looking to prove myself to my True Love." He almost told Nobu of the fallen star, but decided for some reason against it, like someone reached into his mouth and tied his tongue.

Nobu nodded grandly.

"A most noble quest indeed. And a more joyous one than mine."

"Why is that? Surely becoming King must be a happy prospect?"

Nobu snorted, whipping the horses to run faster.

"It would be, if it didn't involve running away from my brother, Vladimir, out of fear for my life."

Foggy stared at him.

"Why would your own brother want to kill you? Have you stolen his favourite royal trousers?"

"Because he wants the crown for himself, of course." Nobu paused for a second before adding. "And because I killed his favourite brother, Anatoli."

Foggy choked, and tried to back away from Nobu as much as the small couch would allow it, tense and ready to fight for his life. The other man simply scoffed at him.

"Do not be daft, Foggy Nelson, I would never harm an innocent, especially one I offered my help to. Killing all other aspirants to the throne has been a royal tradition in Stormhold for generation, but I would never extend it to anybody else. You are not of royal blood, are you?"

Foggy relaxed a bit in the face of the other man's calm words, but shook his head vehemently.

"Yeah, not so much. Boring old Joe here. My mother was a gipsy and my father is a merchant. I just want to go back to Wall to marry Marci and take over the book store when my father retires."

Nobu simply nodded again.

"See, we have nothing to fear from one another."

With that the silence fell once more upon them. So did the rain. It started to drop so hard that they were soon soaked to the bone, and the sight of an inn a little over a quarter of an hour later was nothing short of a divine blessing.

They both jumped down, Lord Nobu going to the door while Foggy Nelson took the horses to the stable, intent on rewarding them for the swift and comfortable travel they had offered to him. He was almost done with them when a girl with a surprisingly deep voice came to offer him a cup of hot wine.

He brought the cup to his lips, but a snow white horse burst from a stall further in the stable and knocked down the cup with one precise hoof. Foggy felt the urge to tell it off, irritated that he lost an occasion to warm himself, when he noticed that the liquid it had contained was eating through the straw and the very floor of the stable.

In a second, he understood that the cup hadn't been directed at him but at Nobu, and he sprinted toward the door of the inn, trying to warn him before it was too late.

He opened the door just in time to see Nobu's head being cracked open on the corner of a table, and a tall muscular bald man leaving his lifeless body crumble to the floor.

The tall man hadn't seen him yet, and instead turned to something else on the other side of the room. That was when Foggy noticed Matthew, face horrified and pale, trying desperately to escape him, but tripping over chairs and tables he couldn't see.

Foggy ran to him, grabbing him and dragging him behind him.

"Foggy?"

Matthew's voice was steady despite his fright, and Foggy couldn't help but be impressed by his control. He himself was quaking in his boots.

"Yeah, Matty, it's good ol'Foggy."

Matt was about to answer when the other man sneered at them instead.

"So you've found yourself a dashing knight? No matter, I'll kill him first, and cut out your heart after. It'll be frightened and dull, but it's better than no heart at all, and I'll be young again!"

With that he lifted his great knife and Foggy felt Matt grab his arm tighter. He was about to run for the door when the man spoke some ancient and terrible words and great green flames burst into existence all around them. As a last resort, Foggy grabbed the remainder of the black candle from his pocket.

"Matt? Grab me tight and think of home." Without waiting for an answer, he stretched his arm and thrust the candle into the fire. There was a searing pain, and with a flash of light, they were gone. He heard the big man's knife shatter as a distant echo.

OOOOOOOO

Foggy Nelson was a bright boy, and he had read about a lot of adventures in the books of his father. However, in none of these adventures had he ever read of anyone landing on a cloud.

In fact, he was completely sure that his teachers had taught him that clouds were made of water vapor, and thus under no circumstances should be able to support the weight of a human, or a star.

Which explained why he remained frozen and still for a good long while, contrary to Matthew who was currently pacing the length of the cloud, seemingly unconcerned of falling to his death. To be fair, though, it wouldn't be an entirely novel experience for him.

"You had a Babylon candle and you didn't tell me!"

Foggy frowned at him, and experimentally, slowly, sat up from his half sprawl.

"What?"

Matthew glared in his general direction from the edge of the cloud.

"You had a BABYLON CANDLE and you didn't tell me?"

Foggy swallowed.

"Can we have this conversation at a safer distance from 'oops I'm blind and I fell'?"

Matthew didn't stop frowning, but walked gingerly toward Foggy, plopping down beside him. A bit too close, but Foggy much preferred a bit too close to too far away, in this particular instance.

"Would you care to tell me why we didn't use the candle right away, to get to your precious Marci?"

Foggy shrugged awkwardly, which Matt would feel, from where their shoulders were pressed together.

"Because I was keeping it for you to go back to the sky?"

There was a deafening silence and Foggy had to turn to see Matt's face. The star looked stunned to his core.

"Really?" Matt's voice was shy and full of a wonder Foggy hadn't heard before. He shrugged again, trying to lighten the situation.

"Yeah, well I'm the one forcing you to trek half way around the world, buddy, it's only fair."

Matthew seemed impervious to Foggy's desire to diffuse the situation, and threw his arms around Foggy's neck, hugging him fiercely.

" _Thank you."_

Foggy coughed, but didn't move away, instead wrapping an awkward arm around Matt's shoulders. After all, the hug was warm and strangely pleasant, and Foggy was never going to say no to that, not after the few days he just had.

"All that still doesn't explain why we're on a cloud, though."

Matt finally let go, but stayed close to Foggy. It seemed the star needed comfort just as much as Foggy.

"Well, you said think of home. So I thought of my home and you thought of yours. Now we're halfway between the two."

Foggy groaned and let his forehead flop down to Matt's shoulder.

"Of course we are. I'm such a fucking idiot." Matt nudged his shoulder with his softly.

"You just saved our lives, Foggy."

"Yeah, well, now we're stuck on a cloud. I don't know if you can feed of darkness and drink moonlight, Mr. Star, but _I'm_ going to need actual food at some point."

"We'll figure it out." He seemed so utterly confident, Foggy didn't have the heart or the energy to argue with him. Instead, he decided to enjoy the soothing freshness of the cloud against the burnt skin of his hand.

Until five minutes later when he remembered his earlier fright.

"What happened to you, Matty? I came back and you were gone and there was blood everywhere."

Matt shrugged again, trying to look unaffected, but pressed himself even closer to Foggy.

"I don't know for sure. I was sleeping, then these _things_ jumped on me. I don't know what they were, or what they wanted, I just tried to stop them from hurting me. Then a unicorn came out, scared them away, and let me ride it until we reached the inn you found me in."

Foggy stared at him.

"A unicorn."

"Yes."

"A _unicorn_?"

"Yes, Foggy. They are children of the Moon, just like I am. We understand and help each other."

"Of course you do. So you were saved by a unicorn. Did you have a picnic with pixies too?"

Matt pushed his shoulder hard enough that Foggy fell to the side, laughing despite himself.

"Foggy, I'm serious!"

"So am I, Matt, but seriously, a unic-AAH!" A large net fell over the two of them and dragged them up.

OOOOOOOOO

Foggy Nelson knew of pirates. One can't read so many books about travels and adventures without coming across them multiple times. However, had he been told he would one day meet real in-the-flesh pirates, Foggy Nelson would have imagined them as great hulking beasts, with a few limbs missing for good measure.

He could never have imagined Captain Claire Shakespeare and her first mate Karen Moliere. The former was a formidable Latin looking woman, with half her head shaved and a wickedly sharp grin. The latter looked like an angel with her long blond hair and large blue eyes, but Foggy could see three guns strapped to her belt.

Matt and he had been on the ship, named Hell's Kitchen of all things, for a few hours now, and Foggy was no closer to making sense of the situation.

Matt, on the other hand, wasn't fazed, but then again, he was the same star that didn't seem overly worried about being blind. Foggy wasn't sure if anything short of a man trying to eat his heart could faze him.

They were all sitting around a table, drinking tea and eating biscuits, Matt chatting smoothly with the two women.

"How long have you been flying this boat, Captain?"

Claire shrugged and laughed a bit.

"Ever since I was born. It was my mother's ship, and her mother's before, and so and so for more generations than I care to count. It used to sail on the oceans before it could fly. When I took over, I chose my name and have been roaming ever since."

Foggy grinned at her.

"You mean your name isn't actually Shakespeare?" Claire laughed joyfully.

"Ah, I have a scholar at my table. No, my father's name was Temple. I didn't mind it, but it doesn't exactly puts fear in the heart of my enemies. I never knew him anyway."

Matt cocked his head in Foggy's direction, puzzled. The young man sent a brief thank to his English teacher.

"Shakespeare is a playwright where I come from, as is Moliere by the way. Not exactly what I would choose to intimidate my enemies either."

Claire smirked.

"They hear it as 'Shakes Spear' and as 'Mauler'. They usually aren't the most educated of men. Anybody who still doubts us, well, we persuade them."

Matt grimaced at them.

"You kill them?"

Karen choked on her tea, and shook her head vehemently, long hair flapping around.

"God no. Nothing quite so final. We only seek the money we need to keep on flying. Violence is nothing but a last resort." Claire smiled and her and put a hand on her arm.

"But if we need to, I am good enough with knifes and Karen with guns to hurt like a bitch without actual lasting damages."

Matt frowned, visibly confused.

"Is it worth it? Stealing and hurting people, just to keep flying?"

Claire lost her smile.

"In the air, we are free, Matthew. Do you know what it's like for women down there? It's dirty, and it's painful, it's marrying and having children or being burned at the stake for witchcraft. It's serving and being obedient or being beaten down until you can't get up. Am I happy that my freedom comes for stealing and hurting? Fuck no. But it's a damn sight better than any other option we have, and no one will hurt my crew again while I am still flying."

Matt seemed stunned at her intensity, and Foggy nudged his shoulder gently in support before asking the question he knew Matt didn't dare to voice.

"Again?" Karen looked at him with steel in her eyes.

"Not all of us were born in the sky, Foggy. Some ran away to it."

"I'm sorry." Matt and Foggy whispered as one, because there was nothing more for them to say.

Claire suddenly beamed at them, like they had passed some kind of test, before standing up.

"Good, now let's see if we can get you out of these dreadful clothes."

Matt and Foggy stayed frozen, not following the quick change of atmosphere, but Karen bounced to the ball of her feet, already opening the door leading to what looked like a walk-in closet.

"I'm sorry, girls, but maybe Matt will fit in one of your dresses, but I definitely won't."

Claire clapped him soundly on the shoulder as she passed, before tugging lightly on Matt's arm until he followed her, perfectly docile. Foggy cursed at him because no one should go that willingly when two terrifying women talked about make overs.

"As much as the idea of Matt in a dress is an attractive one, we have actual male clothes, Foggy." Karen was chattering from the inside of the closet.

"Why on heart does an all-female crew have male clothes?" Foggy asked, finally standing up, joining them.

"Because not every girl feels like wearing a dress all the time. Especially on a ship."

Foggy had to give to her, because while Karen was wearing a grey dress, Claire had trousers and a blouse.

"But it won't fi-"

Karen pushed a pile of clothes in his arms, before plunging back, presumably for Matthew who was still holding Claire's arm, and looked supremely amused.

"And men do not hold the monopoly on being tall and muscular either, so every time we rob someone with pretty clothes, well, we store it for a rainy day. Which is lucky for you, so stop complaining and go get changed."

Foggy decided to cooperate, and went to put on the brown pants and blue shirt Karen had given him, surprised to find them fitting very well. It was nothing, however, to how perfectly Matt's new clothes hung to his form, as Foggy discovered when he came back from the corner he had used for privacy. Somehow Karen had found him some tight black breeches that highlighted his thighs in all the right ways, and a dark red blouse whose neckline stretched gloriously low, giving a stellar view of his pectoral muscles. Foggy felt heat rush down toward his groin with a speed and determination unknown to him previously, even from when he had accidently seen under Marci's skirt that one time she tripped in front of him.

He had to look away, thinking of worms and mud and anything to keep himself from getting _too_ interested, because while Matt wouldn't see it, he didn't think Claire and Karen would ever let him live it down. Matt demanded his attention back, however, stretching his arms on either side of him with a shy grin.

"So how do I look? Claire has been entirely unhelpful and Karen has been giggling for the past few minutes, for some reasons."

Foggy cleared his throat, feeling really warm.

"You look good, man. Good job on that, looking good. I mean you have nice—you know what, just never mind. You rock that outfit dude, let's leave it at that."

Matt's smile was now wide and happy, and his cheeks were a little redder than before. Karen started giggling even harder, and had to turn away, one small hand in front of her mouth. Claire simply looked like the cat who caught the canary.

"Thanks, Foggy. I'm sure you look good too."

Before Foggy could find a snarky comeback, Claire tutted and made her way to him.

"He's getting there, but first, we need to make something with his hair."

Foggy's "what's wrong with my hair?" was drowned by Matt's "what does his hair look like?"

Claire forced Foggy to sit down in front of a mirror, and suddenly Karen was behind him with a pair of scissors.

"His hair is a great dirty blond, and really soft, but it's too long and messy. He also has that terrible goatee that has to disappear for the good of this land."

Foggy tried to protest, but half an hour later, he had chin length clean hair and his beard was gone.

OOOOOOOO

The remainder of the day was spent retelling their story to Karen and Claire, and by the time Foggy and Matt were installed in a small room with two thin mattresses for the night, Foggy was exhausted. He hadn't slept since he was in Wall, and he was just about ready to fall. Matt, on the other hand, was bouncing around because of course, it was night time.

Suddenly he came to a stop in front of where Foggy was sprawled, and plopped himself down.

"Why did Marci asked you to come get a star?"

Foggy frowned at him.

"She didn't ask me, I offered."

"Why did you offer such a thing? Couldn't you simply ask her if you could court her?"

"I did! That's the first thing I did, of course!"

Matt simply looked more confused.

"And she said no?"

"She said she liked me, but she wasn't sure she wanted a relationship."

"Then what would bringing a star change?"

"It would prove I was worthy of being with her!"

"But doesn't she know you?"

"Yeah, of course she does."

"Then she should already know you're worthy."

"Matt, I'm a shop boy. I'm no one special, but if I could go on the other side of the wall and bring her back a star, then I would be _more._ I would be special."

Matt made a small noise in the back of his throat and leaned forward, feeling around a bit before settling both his hands on Foggy's shoulders.

"I have watched your universe for many years, Foggy Nelson. Long enough to know people are not always what they seem. There are shop boys, and boys who happen to work in shops for the time being. You, Foggy Nelson, are no shop boy. You are special. And if Marci knows you and likes you like you say she does, she knows that."

Foggy closed his eyes as he felt the sting of tears, and brought up one hand to rest against Matt's.

"Then why doesn't she want me?"

Matt shrugged.

"Everyone is different and wants different things. Maybe Marci doesn't want a relationship, or to have a husband and child. Maybe it has nothing to do with you, Foggy, but about what Marci wants for herself."

There was a long silence, before Foggy sighed and shook his head.

"I've been an ass, haven't I?"

Matt laughed and shoved back Foggy toward his mattress.

"Yes, you have. I can't complain, though. I still have a heart because you were an ass."

Foggy laid down, smiling at Matt who was still sitting on his mattress.

"Then I'm glad I was a bit of an ass. Even if I have to spend the rest of my life grovelling to Marci."

Matt smiled indulgently.

"Good night, Foggy."

"Good night, Matty."

OOOOOOOOOO

The next few days aboard Hell's Kitchen were interesting. On one hand they learnt that Foggy was decent with a sword once Claire taught him the basics, that he was a dreadful piano player, to the crew's amusement, but a stellar cook.

On the other hand, Matt got better and better at functioning without his sight, to the point that he didn't even appear blind if you didn't know him. He also had freakily perceptive other senses, to compensate.

Which lead to a few conversation such as:

"No, Matt, humans are not supposed to hear each other's _heartbeats._ That's invasive."

"Then I suppose I'm not supposed to know you nicked an orange from the store room either..?"

"How could you possibly know that?"

"You smell citrusy."

"That was yesterday!"

All in all, they learned much from the women, from dancing and table manners with Vanessa to travelling and geography from Elektra and sparring from Natasha.

They even stopped once at a market where Claire went to sell the lightning they collected during thunderstorms. Matt had gone with them, fascinated by the idea of commerce, but Foggy couldn't imagine it to be much different than when middle aged ladies tried to haggle the price of ham, and bowed out.

Foggy felt overwhelmed and strangely at home. He knew Matt had a similar state of mind, if only because they were closer to the stars in the ship than on the ground.

The star rarely left his side, more often than not in speaking distance if not touching distance. It took Karen four days until she could drag him away for a significant amount of time, and only because she argued that he owed her at least one real dance where he didn't step on her toes before they parted ways the following morning.

Claire came and leaned on the side of the boat next to where Foggy was sitting, observing Karen and Matt dance together.

"You know, I always thought I'd be alone. For all my life, I thought I'd be like my mom, flying the boat, being the best damn pirate in the sky, and finding a man in a port that could be good enough to be the father of my daughter, that I would ultimately raise alone to follow in my footsteps." She shifted with a small smile and leaned a little bit toward Foggy.

"And I would have been fine, you know? It would have been a good life, a satisfying one. But then Karen came along. And she changed everything. I didn't want to, at the start. I was so terrible to her, simply because I didn't want my path to change. But she's stubborn, and she held on. She was a mulish little thing, and in the end she won. I fell, and suddenly everything was different. Everything was better. And I cursed at myself for not seeing it earlier."

She fell silent, never taking her eyes off the couple. Foggy sighed.

"If this about me letting Marci go, it's much appreciated, but I had figured that one by myself already."

Claire finally turned around to look at him, her dark eyes soft as velvet.

"I'm not _only_ talking about Marci, Foggy Nelson."

Suddenly, Karen appeared at her side.

"What's going on?"

Claire turned to her and drew her close, kissing her softly.

"We were just talking about how good you two looked tonight." With that Matt was by Foggy's side, helping him up.

"We should get to bed, we're walking again tomorrow."

"Yeah, you're probably right. Good night Claire, Karen."

OOOOOOOOO

Foggy Nelson was going to miss Hell's Kitchen and its crew, but it felt good to be back alone with Matt, without being scrutinized by a group of person all day. The two of them were walking down the main road that Claire had said would bring them back to Wall.

"You know you glitter sometimes?"

Matt turned slightly toward him, but with his face still to the sky, enjoying the warmth of the sun. He was taking full advantage of not having to look where he was going, with Foggy guiding him.

"Do I?"

"Yeah, like you have a halo or something."

"Well, I am a star."

Foggy rolled his eyes at him.

"I just rolled my eyes at you, by the way. And yes, Matthew, I know you're a star, I'm just saying it's weird since you look human and humans don't glitter."

"Be that as it may, I can't exactly help something I'm not aware I'm doing."

Foggy shrugged.

"I know, I know, it's just not really inconspicuous, especially if people are looking for star's heart to cut out and all that. That bald dude can't be the only one after eternal life."

Matt turned fully toward him at that with a small smile.

"Then what do you suggest?"

"I don't know. Throw my coat over your head if anybody's looking?"

Matt burst out laughing, head thrown backward and mouth wide open. Foggy couldn't help but remark to himself again how gorgeous Matt was.

"You are not throwing a coat over my head, Foggy, I'm not a bird!"

Before Foggy could formulate his truly cutting comeback about people living in the sky, Matt froze and whispered a small "someone's coming" before pushing him into a bush, following half a second later.

Foggy found himself on his back with Matt straddling him, the only thing keeping their faces apart were Matt's arms on either sides of his head. Foggy stared wide eyed at Matt, not knowing what to say next.

"I'm sorry, Foggy, I just don't know who could work for that man."

"Don't worry about it, Matty, everything to keep your heart where it belongs."

There was a beat of silence, before Matt cocked his head. Now Foggy could hear the wheels of a carriage on the road, but it seemed completely irrelevant when Matt looked down on him with _that_ expression.

"Aren't you tempted?" His voice was soft and shy.

Before Foggy could say that yes, he was very much tempted and that if Matt didn't leave his lap immediately, he would know exactly how much, the star swallowed and kept going.

"Immortal life?"

Foggy frowned, a little insulted.

"Do you really think I could _ever_ hurt you, Matt? In any way?"

Matt quickly shook his head.

"Of course not. But what if it wasn't me. Just some star you didn't know?"

Foggy frowned even deeper.

"I could never kill anyone Matt. And immortal life? Staying young forever, always the same person when everyone you care about grows old and dies until you are all alone? That sounds like hell."

"And if you had someone to share it with?"

"Then I guess it would depend on the 'someone'. Come on, I think it's safe now."

OOOOOOOOOOO

After walking for an hour or two again, they heard another carriage, and jumped behind a rock, until Matt scrambled up, tugging Foggy with him.

"Matt, what are you doing, he'll see us!"

"He's a friend of Claire's! I met him when we went to trade the lightning, he makes business at the wall! He can probably give us a lift!"

Foggy wanted to object more, but if Claire and Matt trusted him, he would take a chance. It'd be nice not to have to walk all the way back.

"Hello, sir?"

The man stopped the carriage, and turned to look at Foggy. Beside him on a perch was standing an owl.

"That's my flower!"

He was pointing at the glass flower Foggy's father had given him as a good luck charm. With a speed impressive for a man his age, he scrambled toward Foggy, who by reflex drew the sword Claire had gifted to him. Matt tried to step up to help him, but Foggy caught his arm and forced him back.

The old man stopped short, before chuckling good naturedly, holding up his hands.

"I'm sorry, I must have been mistaken."

Foggy shook his head and with his free hand, took the flower from his breast pocket.

"It's alright, since it's obviously of value to you, I will trade it."

Matt made a displeased sound at that, knowing it was a gift that both Foggy and his father held dear, but the old man didn't seem to notice.

"What do you want?"

"Safe passage to the wall for both of us. With food and cover."

The old man readily agreed, and Foggy handed him the flower.

"Do you know what this flower is, boy?"

Foggy shrugged, uneasy at the tone. Matt stepped closer to him, frowning even deeper than before.

"Some kind of good luck charm?"

"Yes indeed. The kind that would have prevented me from doing _this."_

He stretched an arm and suddenly Foggy found himself getting smaller and smaller until he blacked out.

The first thing he knew when he woke up was that he was now in a cage, and really, really small. The second was that Matt was standing in front of him. Foggy didn't know why the old man didn't harm Matt, but he was glad the star was okay.

"Foggy? Foggy can you hear me? If you can understand me, scream twice."

Foggy could definitely understand Matt, but he wasn't in control of his new body enough to comply yet. Matt took his silence as a negative, and flopped down on the floor beside the cage with a ragged sigh.

"I swear to you Foggy, if that old crook doesn't turn you back, I will ruin him for you."

Foggy couldn't help but find the imagery of a blind star fighting an old magical man amusing, but Matt wasn't done talking.

"You know, I didn't realise how dull the life of a star is. We come out, we shine, we look at your world, and then we go to sleep, every day, without fail. I thought I understood emotions. I thought that by observing you and your people, I knew love, and anger, and sadness."

He shifted with a sigh and rubbed at his eyes.

"But I didn't. God Foggy, you can't understand how wrong I was. Ever since I fell down, I've felt _so much_ I thought I would die from it, that my heart would burst. I thought this couldn't possibly be normal. It couldn't be normal that I felt like all the blood had left my body when the warlock tried to kill me. Or to feel like there was a _volcano_ in my chest when this man transformed you into a mouse. I wanted to kill him, Foggy. _I_ wanted to _kill_ him. Because he hurt _you._ "

He laughed, looking up at the ceiling.

"And I could never understand why humans were ready to lose everything because of love. How anything could be that potent and that magical at the same time. But now- now I do. I understand it all, because- because I don't think there's anything I wouldn't do for you, Foggy."

He looked away, and Foggy wanted to scream at him, because he needed to see Matt's face now. He needed to _know_ the star was telling the truth.

"You said earlier you'd do everything to keep my heart where it belongs. Well, that'll be easy for you. Anyone who would open my chest now would find nothing there, Foggy. Because my heart is with you."

After that he was silent, keeping guard in front of Foggy's cage, leaving the poor mouse to ponder on how unfair it was that he was stuck in a cage.

OOOOOOOOOO

Later that day, the carriage jolted to a halt. The warlock climbed in, and Matt scrambled out of his way to avoid being stepped on. One old hand reached into the cage, and Foggy suddenly was in the air, carried outside. The warlock put him back on the ground.

"The wall is a mile off that way, but it'll take you a little longer than usual to get there, your mind will be a little scrambled."

With that, Foggy was suddenly growing tall again, and Matt was at his side in an instant, helping him to stand upright.

"Matt?"

"Yes, Foggy, it's me. Come on, I think I hear an inn that way, let's get you to a bed."

Foggy spared a brief thought to Karen who had made sure to give each of them a full purse before sending them on their merry way.

Matt got them a room and helped Foggy lie on the bed, after which the man was aware of nothing.

When Foggy Nelson joined once again the realm of wakefulness, he had two thoughts. First, bless mattresses and actual beds, god he had missed them, and someone was taking a bath in the room, humming to themselves.

Foggy got slowly to his feet and walked toward the folding screen. On the other side he was treated to the very nice view of Matthew's back. He stopped there for a second before jumping when Matt talked.

"Staring's not very nice, you know."

Foggy grinned and leaned on the wall.

"How do you know I'm looking at you, you vain, vain man? Maybe I'm staring at the bath you stole from me."

Matt laughed and reached for a towel.

"I'm done anyway, you can have the bath now."

Since Matt didn't asked him to, Foggy didn't stop looking at him as he stepped out. He kept his back to him as he dried himself, but Foggy couldn't resent the eyeful of Matt's spectacular ass he got. Finally he tied the towel around his waist, and turned to face Foggy.

"Did you mean what you said in the carriage?"

Matt froze, before his mouth opened and closed a few times as he got increasingly redder.

"You- you- You heard me? But I – I asked you to talk to me! I asked you to give a sign!"

He tried to hide his face in his hands, but Foggy stepped in, grabbing his hands softly, smiling like a loon.

"I had been a mouse for like five minutes, Matt, I couldn't control myself that well!"

The star pinched his lips and looked deeply embarrassed. Foggy leaned over, almost close enough to kiss him.

"Did you mean it, Matthew?"

The star swallowed, his face turning to Foggy like he was the sun.

"Of course I did, Franklin. I would never lie to you."

With that Foggy leaned over, pressing their lips together for a second, chaste and dry, before pulling back just a centimeter, just far enough to speak. He ignored Matt's muted whine, whispering softly back to him.

"Good. Because I'm falling in love with you too, Matty."

Suddenly, Matt's hands were in his hair, his mouth on his and his body pressing so close he couldn't breathe and Foggy Nelson was lost.

OOOOOOOOOO

Making love to Matt had been like nothing Foggy Nelson had ever experienced. Lying in bed with him afterward, legs tangled together, and running a hand up and down the star's arm, however, felt like all the best parts of coming home. Matt's eyes were closed, but he was glowing gently and smiling at Foggy like he was the best thing ever.

"So what now?" Matt's voice was soft and fresh, and felt like starlight.

"Hm?"

"What are we doing about tomorrow?"

Foggy tightened his arms around Matt, kissing his forehead.

"Well, I'm going to see Marci, and explain her that my true love isn't blond after all, then I'm going to see my father so that he knows that I am still alive, _then_ I'm coming back and we're doing this all over again."

Matt shifted in Foggy's arm, to frown up at him.

"I'm coming with you."

Foggy chuckled, and squeezed Matt's arm.

"Sorry, buddy, but that's not happening."

Matt pushed Foggy on his back so that he could straddle his hips.

"Why not?"

Foggy carded his fingers into Matt's hair, and smiled when Matt pushed back into it.

"Because you and Marci? Very bad for me. You'll be all adorable and shit, and she'll love you and then she'll be telling you about everything embarrassing I've ever done in my life, and I don't think I can take you and Marci teaming up together."

Matt smiled and leaned down to kiss Foggy softly.

"I'll always be on your side Foggy."

"Yeah, that's because you've never met Marci. She always gets her way, pal, it's spooky."

Matt laughed and shook his head.

"I want to meet your father, Foggy."

"I'm sure I can bring him over, Matt."

Matt leaned back and pouted at him, and it shouldn't be this adorable, but that was Matt for you.

"Please, Foggy?"

Foggy sighed long and deep, before nodding, letting his hand fall to Matt's thighs.

"Fine, Matty. You can come."

The way Matt fell back unto him and kissed him deep and dirty was almost enough to make the prospect of Matt meeting Marcy not terrifying.

Almost.

OOOOOOOO

Foggy Nelson woke up the following morning pleasantly sore and with an armful of star plastered against him. He took a moment to relish in the feeling before realising it was quite early, and that Matt was still deeply asleep.

He slowly untangled himself from Matt, slipping his pillow in between his arms to buy himself a little more time. He managed to get out of the room without waking Matt, and sprinted out of the inn and toward the Wall.

He knew Matt would wake up eventually and be irritated with him, but he wanted to get at least the most embarrassing part of his conversation with Marci done with, aka the part where he told her he had fallen head over heels for what they both thought would be a lump of celestial rock.

There was no need for Matt to hear him stammer and Marci tease him for his blush. When he got to the Wall, Brett was there, his back to Foggy, already standing guard. Foggy slipped behind him without a sound.

"Good morning, Brett!"

The poor man jumped three feet in the airs, before whirling around with his stick that Foggy ducked easily.

"Nelson?"

Foggy grinned at him, trying to look at ease and not like he expected a prissy star to fall on him at any second.

"The one and only. Can I pass?"

Brett stepped aside without a word, eyes wide and round. Foggy was about to step through the wall before he paused.

"Will I be allowed to cross back afterward? Because I have someone I'd rather be able to go back to."

Brett frowned and shrugged.

"What the hell. It's your life, Nelson. If you're stupid enough to go back, be my guest."

Foggy beamed at him once more, and set off in the direction of Wall. It was almost a shock for him to realise that nothing much had changed around him. After all, it had been no more than a week since he left, and yet he felt like a much different man.

Marci's house was just as he remembered, and he hoped she would be awake, despite the early hour. He knocked gingerly, and after a minute, the door opened to a Marci that was thankfully dressed for the day.

"Foggy!"

She opened the door wider, throwing her arms around his neck to hug him tight. He answered in kind, before she backed away and tugged him inside the house.

"Well Mr. Nelson, where is my star?" She didn't say it expectantly or mockingly. She said it like she expected he had done everything he could but did not succeed, and that she liked him for it.

When Foggy looked at her, at that moment, he could see everything he had seen in her that made him fall in love with her, and he knew that hadn't he met Matt, he still would. However he also saw that the affection in her eyes was nothing but friendly, and would always be.

"First off, Marci, I would like to apologize for how insensitive I have been toward you, and how I pushed for you to give me something you weren't willing to offer."

Marci seemed surprised at his words, but she quickly recovered and gestured for him to sit down at the table.

"Well, Foggy Nelson, it seems you have quite the tale to tell me."

More than an hour was necessary for Foggy to retell his adventures to Marci, and at the end he couldn't help but anxiously watch the door, expecting Matt to burst through at any moment, calling him a jerk.

He didn't, however, and at the end of the story, Marci went to hug him again.

"Oh, Foggy-Bear. I'm so glad you've found your way."

Foggy simply shrugged, without trying to keep his smile from being goofy.

"Ha, what can you do? Matt couldn't keep his hands off me."

Marci slapped his shoulder.

"I'm expecting to meet that man of yours, Foggy-Bear."

Foggy groaned.

"Yeah, he said the same thing about you."

Marci laughed and was about to answer when Brett burst through the door. Foggy jumped to his feet, heart in his throat.

"Nelson! That someone of yours, he wouldn't happened to be your height, short dark hair and a red shirt?"

Foggy felt his heart stop.

"Yes?"

"He just got abducted by a tall bald man."

Foggy was already running toward the door, while Brett was still talking.

"He was about to cross the wall, then some gipsy showed up and stopped him, saying something about turning to rock if he crossed, then an old dude was there talking about her being his slave, and then the bald man was there, killed the old dude and took your man and the gipsy."

Foggy was out of the house and the village in a minute, running as hard as he could toward the wall. When he got there, he saw the headless cadaver of the warlock that had turned him into a mouse and the carriage half destroyed.

Without thinking about it, he grabbed the horse that was still tied to the carriage, cut him free and climbed on, following the wheel tracks in the grass. They led him to a frankly impressively dark mansion, and he jumped down the horse, peeking through one of the large windows.

He saw the large bald man from before dragging Matt by the arm, and another old white man and Asian woman were grappling at a Latin woman. He felt anger rise through him, and he was about to jump to Matt's rescue when he felt a knife slide on his throat.

"Don't move."

Foggy cursed silently, before turning his head just slightly to peer at the other man. He had a scarred and angry face, but Foggy recognized the crest on his clothes.

"Vladimir, I guess?" The man scowled at him. "I knew your brother Nobu."

The man pressed his knife harder on Foggy's throat.

"If you don't wish to join him in death, you will tell me what you're doing here."

While his attention was on what Foggy was saying, the young man slipped the knife in his sleeve out and pressed it on Vladimir's side.

"I could ask you the same thing."

Vladimir finally saw the knife, and relented, drawing back. Foggy did the same.

"Look, I'm only here to save my friend. I'm guessing you're after the Royal stone thing like your brother was. Let's just deal with the three creepy persons in there, and then we can each go on our merry way."

Vladimir considered the idea for a moment before nodding jerkily. They both drew their swords, and pushed through the doors.

Now Foggy Nelson, for all the training that Claire had given him, wasn't a soldier, and didn't have to the capacity to distinguish between friend and foe in the heat of the action.

Which would be his excuse in the future for why he almost stabbed the gipsy woman.

She ducked out of the way at the last minute, and grabbed both his forearms.

"Franklin!" He froze, since only his father ever used his full name. She smiled at him, her eyes shining with tears.

"Franklin. It's me, Elena. Your mother."

Foggy choked and stared at her, not sure what the etiquette for meeting your mother for the first time while your lover is about to get his heart cut out. Elena solved the problem quickly, pushing him toward Matt and the bald man.

"Go! Be the man you are supposed to be!"

Once again, Foggy Nelson was not a soldier, or a warrior, or anything of the kind. His memories of the fight that followed would forever be hazy and filled of 'oh my god please don't kill Matt' and 'oh my god I can't believe that worked'.

He remembered that Vladimir killed the old Asian witch, before getting stabbed in the back by the old man that wasn't bald. Foggy remembered that _he_ himself had killed the old man that wasn't bald, and that the other old man that _was_ bald was so pissed at that that he completely forgot about Matt and ran toward Foggy like an enraged bull, swishing a meat cleaver around.

He definitely remembered that Matt was a fucking badass, especially for a blind star, and that he freed himself from the straps the warlocks had used to tie him down, and started shouting at him.

"Foggy! Turn around and close your eyes!"

Now, in hindsight, Foggy found numerous flaws in Matt's plan. First, that was all the warning Foggy got, which meant that if he had had any less faith in Matt and his judgement, he would have been as much of a goner as the bald guy. Second, the bald guy could have just as easily used the warning that was intended for Foggy and turned away. And third, Matt's star superpowers could have been not as awesome as he thought them to be, and not work at all.

However, stars must have been looking down on them, because Foggy threw himself on the ground with his back to Matt, eyes shut tight, the bald man bellowed in rage and looked directly at Matt, and Matt, as usual, was as good as he thought he was.

Long story short? No more bald old guy.

Foggy Nelson would not be the one to mourn him. He sat up gingerly, checking himself for injuries when Matt fell on top of him, holding him so tight Foggy could barely breathe, hiding his head in the crook of Foggy's neck.

"I hate you. I hate you. I hate you so much. None of this would have happened if you just brought me with you this morning."

Foggy tugged Matt until he let him up, wrapping his own arm around Matt's shoulder and pressing his face into his hair gratefully.

"From what I understand, Matty, if you'd crossed the wall, I would have finally had a pretty little rock to give to Marci."

Matt groaned and pressed his face closer into Foggy's neck.

"Shut up. You're not allowed to be right and logical when I'm mad at you."

Foggy simply laughed and kissed his hair, before slowly guiding him towards the door. He wanted to leave this wretched place behind forever.

Elena ran up to them, and proceeded to hug the lights out of Matt. Foggy was just about to join when he noticed the necklace Matt had been wearing with the large stone. He realised it must have been what Nobu and Vladimir were after. Slowly, he detached himself from Matt's side, the star frowning in his direction, and picked up the colorless gem.

Just as his finger touched the stone, it turned scarlet, like someone had dropped blood in a bowl of water.

Elena saw the stone he was holding and smiled widely.

"Of course. I am the daughter of the late King of Stormhold, and thus, you, Franklin, are the last male heir to the throne."

Matt inhaled sharply and leaned over to look at the stone he had carried so far without knowing it could belong to Foggy.

Foggy Nelson, who had always thought he would marry Marci Stahl and sell books in the village of Wall, found only one thing to say.

"Here I was worried about finding a job and a place to live."

Matt simply tugged him back and kissed him deeply.

OOOOOOOOOOO

The coronation had been a grand thing. For the occasion, all those who Foggy invited from England were allowed to cross the wall.

His father, of course, came and seemed ecstatic at rejoining finally with Elena, and what happened between those two, Foggy very much didn't want to know.

Marci came as well, and finally met Matt, which went about as well as Foggy expected. She also got along with Claire and Karen like a house on fire, and if Foggy didn't know better, he'd think Hell's Kitchen would have a new crew member very soon.

In honor of his coronation, Elena had gifted Foggy with another Babylon Candle, to replace the one he had spent on saving their life.

The ceremony had been awe inspiring, with Matt by his side and his friends in the audience, but the moment Foggy Nelson would remember until his oldest age would be this one.

Everyone had gone to bed, and with Matt, they climbed up until they reached the top of the very high tower of Stormhold, the one that overlooked the whole kingdom. There they laid, side by side, hands clasped together, watching Matt's sibling in the night sky, and Matt assured him they were looking back.

"You could go, you know. Now. Use the candle and be with them again."

Matt tightened his grip on Foggy's hand and brought it up to his mouth.

"I know, Foggy."

"I know you miss them."

"I do. But I would miss you more. And what's a few decades in the life of a star?"

Foggy turned and smiled at him.

"You'll wait for me?"

Matt kissed him softly.

"Until the stars go out."

There was a beat of silence before Foggy snorted and threw his head back, pushing Matt away in fake disgust.

"Holy shit that was cheesy! MATT! God help me I married a dork."


End file.
